Ever Present Interest
by hahalolsmileyface
Summary: POSSESSION REMAKE! Madara has finally taken over Konoha after years of patient planning. Now in order to initiate the final stages of Tsuki no Me to achieve his desired peace, all he needed was the missing Jinchuuriki that seemed to have disappeared off the face of the Earth: Naruto. It was most unfortunate that his ever present interest in someone just had to get in the way.HIATUS


Chapter 1

Madara stared wordlessly down at Konoha, the whole village seemingly taking on a permanent gloom. He supposed it was his fault, really. Killing the Hokage of the village wasn't exactly a very good first impression.

Not like he cared.

He was currently where he wanted to be and nothing else mattered. Already Hokage of the village that was supposed to be his in the first place, his clan being restored at a rapid pace, all of the villagers and ANBU under his strict command.

A man of power like him could want for nothing.

Nothing except the nine-tails.

For Project Tsuki no Me, he was crucial to the plan and without Naruto, he was having to resort to violence to achieve the peace he desired many times since Izuna had given him his eyes.

He resisted the urge to touch them, the only thing of his brother he had left.

His face was blank, hardly showing a touch of emotion as he thought of the past and gave a small sigh.

At the moment, Madara had some patience (after all, patience was the very thing that brought him Konoha) but even with his vast ocean of tolerance, it was starting to fray a little as each day passed with no Naruto in his grasp.

Honestly, knowing the boy he'd have thought his temper would have allowed him to be caught easily but he soon realized that it might not have been the case.

Madara leaned back in his chair, staring blankly up at the ceiling. He could wait. The little fox boy can't stay in hiding for too long and even if he did, something was bound to turn up.

* * *

><p>Sakura's eyes couldn't help but water at the sight of her fellow villagers. No one did anything to help anybody, she could see the distrust in their eyes. When Tsunade was Hokage, people were more than willing to spare a word or two to another person, their eyes weren't so sharp, and they never looked so... weary.<p>

"Kaori," came the soft voice of her teacher, burying his nose in a book but not really reading it. "We're only here for herbs, for the stuff you need." he reminded.

"Kaka- Sen," she corrected herself, sniffling just a bit and looking at the henge of Kakashi. "Don't you feel anything for the village?"

He paused and looked at her from the corner of his eye, not answering. She had once been strong, his little genin used to be so grown up, so in control of her emotions but it seems the brutal murder of Tsunade made her... vulnerable.

Sakura sighed, expecting the silence. When they came upon the stall that they usually went to, Sakura was abruptly jerked to the side. She stared back in surprise at the little boy who was currently running with all he had, a small loaf of bread in his tiny hands.

"Thief!" someone shrieked and Sakura didn't think twice as she took off after the little boy, following his movements, chasing him until he panted against the wall in an alley. She was barely out of breath, leaping down from the roof and startling the poor boy.

As she came closer, she could see the large bruises that decorated his skin, the loose and baggy clothing swamping his small frame. The dirt stained his face, making his blue eyes stand out and his matted hair had grime caked into it. And this boy couldn't have been more than the age of 4.

"Please, oneesan." he sobbed, slumping to his knees. The bread in his hand fallen and forgotten on the floor of the dirty alley. "Hisan was hungry." he cried out. "Hisan was hungry. Won't do it again."

Sakura froze, heart breaking for the poor creature. "I-"

"Please!" he shrieked when she touched his arm. "No punishing!" he grabbed desperately onto her wrist and tears spilled out. "Hisan sorry!" Sakura could feel herself tearing up and brought him into a hug.

"I'm sorry." she whispered shakily. "I'm sorry." And she was. She could feel the deep regret at having not fought harder in the battle. She regretted not fighting harder for Konoha. She regretted the state that her village was in and with all of this regret she could feel a small spark of anger. She clenched her fist and repeated the only words of comfort she could offer him. "I'm sorry."

"O-nee...san?" he asked frightened. "No hurt Hisan." he pleaded. "Sorry. Hisan sorry." he whimpered and Sakura pulled back, wiping his tears away with a small smile.

"Of course not." Hisan's eyes momentarily brightened and he bent down to pick up the loaf of bread. "Wait," she said gently, careful not to frighten the poor creature. "Don't eat that... I know I can't do much but," she took his hand and put five silver coins in it. "Here. Buy something delicious."

His eyes widened exponentially at seeing this much money in the palm of his hand but before he could say anything, she was gone. He frowned at this unexpected kindness, knowing even for a little boy his age that such acts were very rare these days.

He did not know the words for thank you, he had not been taught nor had the occasion for such an expression ever arose but the little boy clutched those coins tightly in his hands, vowing never to spend it so it would serve as a reminder that there were still good people in the world.

* * *

><p>The trip back home was traveled in silence. Kakashi had the bag of herbs she needed when she found him just outside of the village gates and he would occasionally glance at her, sensing the subtle shift in her mood.<p>

When they stopped for the night, she only asked him one question. "Do you ever think of taking Konoha back?"

Kakashi frowned. It was uncharacteristic of her to sound so ominous. "What are you thinking about Sakura?"

She only spared him a glance, the green of her eyes that were usually watery seemed hardened by determination. The rest of the journey was wordless.

* * *

><p>Sakura felt herself jerking back and forth in a harsh but rhythmic beat. Without opening her eyes, she could already tell that she was in a cart full of packed people. She was on her knees, head down, wrists shackled with heavy iron. The cart smelled like urine, death, and hopelessness. She smiled.<p>

The plan had worked.

And it only took five years of convincing the council to let her on this dangerous mission.

Well... that and five years of training. She remembered each and every day after her little trip to buy herbs, the fierce determination glowing bright and strong. She remembered how hopeless she had felt, how weak she was when all she did after the fall of Konoha was let it be taken and _kept_ by what she deemed was the most cruelest man to have ever lived. And each time she felt herself losing her fuel, her fire, she would remember that little boy in the alley who had resorted to stealing just to stay alive.

It broke her heart that it took her so long to realize that she wasn't the only who had suffered from loss. It was everyone.

The loss of trust, hope, and friendship. The loss of Konoha's Will of Fire.

She immediately felt the shame wash over her and just as quickly she quashed it down. It wouldn't do to be distracted. Not when it was crucial for all her attentions to stay on infiltrating the village she used to call home. A small wistful sigh escaped her lips. Home. She missed the days where Madara was nothing but a legend, bordering on a myth. She missed... laughter.

Suddenly, the cart jerked to a halt and she listened hard for any indication of what might be going on.

The door opened harshly and a man wearing a mask came in view. _So he's got ANBU doing his dirty, demeaning work now huh._ It almost gave her a small bit of satisfaction that the organization that was most feared and revered had nothing better to do than to check up on the poor women, future to-be mothers of Uchiha children.

"Come out and stand in a line. I suppose I don't have to remind each of you that any foolish moves to escape or kill would result in your death?" When no answer was forthcoming, he grunted and stepped out of the way so that they could do as he asked.

From the point Sakura let herself be captured till now, she mulled over what might be done or the process she had to complete to finally be within the palace walls. As far as anybody knew really was that in order to be a future Uchiha mother, the unfortunate woman had to either be captured, have the unfortunate luck of being sold, or volunteer. What happened after that was beyond her.

She climbed out with the rest of the girls and stood at the very end of the line while another ANBU placed two fingers on each girl's neck. He would pause, emit a dark blue chakra, then move onto the next girl. Sakura was wary when the ANBU had finally stood in front of her. It made her uncomfortable not knowing what she was getting herself into or what this ninja would be doing to her but she kept chanting in her head that it was for the sake of Konoha that she _had_ to do this. If it meant accepting a foreign chakra into her body then so be it.

"Wait!" Sakura blurted just before his two fingers reached the side of her neck. "What- what are you going to do to me?"

She didn't receive an answer. Instead the ANBU touched his fingers to her neck and she felt a cool stream of chakra flow into her, poking, probing, washing over through her body and all over her organs. Had she not been an experienced medical ninja, she wouldn't have known that he was doing a full-body check for damages and health concerns.

Sakura refrained from breathing a sigh of relief. At least it now told her something about the ANBU in front of her. He wasn't just any deadly ninja. He was a medical one. _So now they have medical ninjas out on the field. I wonder why. Maybe it's for this purpose only.._

When the cool trails of chakra retreated, she felt a new kind of chakra seeping into her neck. It wasn't the soothing cool she had experienced earlier. It was slightly harsh. It irritated the skin from where it was forced and she couldn't help but frown at this unknown jutsu. She had absolutely no idea what he was doing.

The foreign energy trailed a path seemingly lazily around her neck before crawling down her spine. It did a small circle at the base of her back before crawling back up, eventually making itself home on her left shoulder blade.

And she still had no idea what this meant.

The ninja retracted his fingers and Sakura stiffly walked back to the cart, shackles uncomfortably chaffing her skin. She tried not to be too alarmed... As long as she was still alive, it shouldn't be too much of an inconvenience.

At least that was what she tried to convince herself with. It almost seemed to be working as she settled back into her place in the corner, when she spotted a prominent blob three times the size of her thumbnail on a girl's outer ankle.

As she studied it further, the coldest chill swept through her as she started to recognize why this blob had looked unbearably familiar. It was in the shape of a traditional Japanese fan, the top most part of it dyed a crimson red while the remaining bottom took on the purest white.

Sakura felt the growing shock, horror, and worst of all humiliation settle deep within the pit of my stomach at having been branded like an animal.

She clenched her fist and held the tears back.

If it was necessary to suffer this belittlement to win the brewing battle against Madara then she would do so without question. It didn't help her stamp out the resentment or the revulsion she had for the man that dared to carry the title of Hokage.

_He doesn't deserve it._ Sakura bit her lip harshly so that her emotional turmoil wouldn't affect her chakra balance. It wouldn't do if her henge were to waver now. Not after she went through _that_ degradation.

She tentatively brushed the spot where her... mark... was. It tingled lightly as if greeting her. She dropped her bound hands, glaring harshly at the floor. If she didn't have much of a reason to hate him before, then she did now and she vowed that for every wrong he did, she would pay it back to him in painful deaths.

Because if the immortal bastard could cheat his way from death once, then it was logical that he would have the decency to cheat his way from death a thousand times more just so she could make good on her promise.

* * *

><p>AN: I know that the ending was a bit clipped but it was because I had no idea how to end it (/.\)

Now, in case anybody hasn't noticed, this is the remake of 'possession'. I know I promised it awhile ago but I had a writer's block so it took much more longer than i had originally thought to get this up but... :D IT'S FINALLY UP so i feel amazingly accomplished :3 lol

haha so yeah I hope you enjoy this chapter that was unfortunately shorter than usual ^-^"

until next time:)


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